Personal financial software - Intuit's Quicken

Quicken Basic

This bargain basement program allows you to track all your financial transactions and create and balance your budget. You may also pay your bills and connect to your bank and credit card companies via the internet, all for $30 (and your computer may already include this option on your system).

Quicken Deluxe

For $60 or less this program takes you some steps further, allowing you to track your expenses, including balancing your checkbook, creating reports, printing checks; pay your bills on line (for a monthly fee); and come tax time, transfer this data to Intuit's Turbo Tax. Quicken claims you will be able to save for college, or retirement and even find hidden tax deductions. But don't look for any kind of investing comparisons or help. For that you will need to upgrade to Premier.

Quicken Premier

If you have any kind of portfolio, Premier will help you analyze your portfolio, compare your investments to the indexes, generate tax reports and even find ways to minimize the capital gains taxes, all for $80.

Quicken Premier Home and Business

If you run your own small business, $90 or less will buy Premier Home and Business. This program will do all the above plus create estimates and invoices, business plans, and track payables and reimbursables. If you have a Palm there is even some synchronization, so you can input on the road, download when you get to your office.